Best MPC for Beginners : Top Akai MPC of 2019

The MPC, i.e., Music Production Controller was initially known as MIDI Production Center. Akai – a Japanese company, has earned a lot of appreciation from the professionals because of its unbeatable performance in the field of manufacturing the best MPC beat machines from 1988 onwards. Today in this article, I am listing down Akai’s best MPC of 2018 for those people who are newbies in the music community. Read further and select the best one for you.

Best MPC for Beginners

Music Production Controller comes with the MPC software and provides a lot of great features to help you in producing music and make music on the go. So, let me give the necessary information about some of the best but cheap MPC for sale.

1. Akai Professional MPC X

Get a 10.1 inches high-resolution standalone MPC by purchasing Akai professional MPC X. It comes with the 16 GB of internal storage with 10GB of pre-installed content, 2GB of RAM, and a large SD card slot. The kit includes power adapter, USB cable, software download card, quick start guide, and safety manual.

Features and Specifications

It provides the multi-touch display, and the best part is you don’t need a computer to operate the MPC. But it is compatible with Windows 8.1, Mac OS X 10.10.5, or newer.

There are two USB-A 3.0 slots in which one can insert and operate the external drives or MIDI controllers. It also acts as a controlling counter for MPC 2.0 software.

It can help you combine the modular setup which comes with eight CV/Gate outputs. This instrument also comes with sixteen Q-Link GUI knobs.

There are various inputs for mic, line, instrument, phono, and six I/O ports for MIDI and 63 dedicated function buttons.

It offers 2.5” SATA power connectors to insert SSD or HDD.

Apart from these features, Akai MPC X has 8 GHz quad-core processor, and it provides 16 RGB pads which are supremely responsive and also pace & pressure sensitive. There are 16 gigs already built-in and ten world-class sounds.

2. Akai Professional MPC Studio

Akai MPC studio is by far the best MPC as per me. It has 16 velocity sensitive and pressure sensitive backlit pads. These pads can give you the ability to be very expressive and very creative when inputting music into the software.

Features and Specifications

Its 4 Q-link knobs are touch sensitive, and with these dials, you can assign them to adjust any of the effects parameters, levels, envelopes, etc. which are also included in the software.

It is portable, compact, and light-weight. It comes with scroll wheel and aluminum dial. Because of being so handy and classy, you can take it anywhere.

One of the most significant features on this MPC is its workflow. There is an overdub mode that allows the player to create a sequence within a loop. So whenever it loops back around, one can input more instruments and more sounds.

The MPC swing is legendary. It’s been heard on thousands of recordings everywhere, and Akai Professional MPC Studio has built that same rhythm inside the software. You can make it aggressive or calm according to your requirements.

There is another unique feature of the Akai MPC software is the ability to load VST plugins. So, go over to the instrument section of your sequence and choose MPC MIDI or plugin to access your VST instruments.

There are two instruments to choose from! One is a collection of samples from the original MPC 60; so all of those gritty high hats and kick drums that were really popular then! And, coming back to today’s music, the second one is a ‘Bank’ which has the collection of samples ranging from guitars, violins, drums, all sorts of different instruments.

3. Akai Professional MPD218

Akai MPD218 is a small portable device for the use of different drum controllers as well as integration with DAWs and iOS platforms. Let’s take a look. There is a vast improvement over the older models. It ditched the old-style gray pads for the big and fat MPC style pads which look nice.

Features and Specification

There is 16 pad with the backlit LED response, which provides a great feeling and lot of fun to play. It is compatible with the Windows 10, 8, 7, Windows Vista, and even Windows XP. Also, you can use it with the Mac OS X 10.4.11.

There is even more control onboard with the six endless encoders. The player can cycle through the A, B, and C, which gives three times more power.

The player can also go for the pads by assigning three whole banks of the 16 sounds. It has proved itself as a small package with great options.

Onboard, there is also some standard controls stuff like our MPC style note repeat button and some repeat values to know the different time resolutions in the swing which can be controlled by holding the note repeat configuration button.

It also offers a full level control so when it is on, all of these pads are going to send 127 velocity values at the total level. The velocity is excellent as there is a lot of range in the playing. You neither have to play softly nor having to hammer down on it.

Overall, the thing feels pretty well built. It fixed in a plastic case, but everything is really sturdy onboard. You can plug and play it with just one cable, and the encoders are also full sized. The whole thing works only perfect as one of the best MPC drum machines.

4. Akai Professional LPD8 Wireless

Akai LPD8 Wireless is a further development of the best known LPD8 Music Production Controller from Akai. It features same as the first version – a backlit velocity sensitive and pressure sensitive drum pads to send the note or program changes. Let me notify some other features.

Features and Specification

The front is still in merely black with white labels. It is a portable MIDI controller with 3 AA conventional batteries. If you want to use this device daily, then go for the rechargeable batteries.

On the right side, there are eight knots for controlling nearly any parameter, and on the left side, there are six buttons like Full level, Tap tempo, Bank, NR configuration, Note repeat, and Select.

The USB slot has been changed then the older one, but it still has a micro USB port which was relatively stable. As this drum pad is the new version, it has no standard USB port. As per my opinion, it is the right decision of Akai because it makes the entire unit better and reliable.

In total, you will get the eight wheel pads, but you will have 16 virtual pads which can be mapped to any software. The new press feature allows you to activate and deactivate the free level of pads.

It also offers Bluetooth connectivity and compatible with Windows, Mac, and iOS. Apart from that, it works extraordinarily fine with iMPC Pro and Akai Professional LPK25 wireless keyboard controller.

Apart from all of these fantastic features, it is able to send the message at a maximum velocity with 127 regardless how much force you use to press them. Isn’t it a great MPC beat machine with such an affordable price? Also, The device is so portable that you can put it any backpack and take it outside. Its compact size makes it a perfect vacation companion. So, grab it for you today!

5. Akai Professional APC40 MKII

The APC40 MKII (Mark 2) is a dedicated Ableton Live controller, and it comes with a copy of live lights. So, you can get started creating music without having second thoughts. As soon as you connect it to your computer and turn it on, the ‘live’ will auto-detect the APC40. You will know that it is working because the live session view will show a colored ring around an eight by five block of clips.

Features and Specification

The APC40 features a set of 40 device control buttons and eight endless knobs that map to your devices automatically, and the track selection buttons route the encoders to the first device or rack on that track.

The LED rings can automatically show you the levels of the selected parameter. Left and the right device can help you with the previous or next device in a track chain.

You must know that some effects or virtual instruments have more than eight parameters. When one of these devices is selected, then the left and right bank buttons shift to the previous or the next bank of eight device parameter controls.

There are four buttons on the downside, which gives you additional control options. The device’s on/off turns the selected thing on or off, and the lock of the device locks the device control knobs to the currently selected device.

You can use APC40 mkII over USB and it also supports plug-and-play connectivity. This feature lets you take this MPC from the house to the working studio to the performing stage without compromising on the power.

Akai Professional APC40 MKII is compatible with Windows XP, Vista, 7, 8, and 10. It comes with robust production suite which includes Ableton live lite, Sonivox twist, Air hybrid, and around 5 GB of internal beats and loops.

So, this is a list and detailed review of the top five Akai MPC of 2018. I hope my review will be helpful to you to find the best companion for you. I understand that if you want to buy the best MPC for yourself, then the music is your lifeline! Stay creative, keep playing, and be happy always.